Annual Press Conference - tesa SE surpasses billion-euro mark for the first time

Mar 20, 2013

Strong growth in products for cars, tablet PCs, and home improve-ment and DIY storesSales up 5.7%, EBIT margin at 12.9% Dynamic development with the electronics industry in Asia Consumer business: expansion in Russia, entry into the home bath-room segment Pharmaceutical patches: first market-ready goods produced

tesa SE continued its positive development in 2012. Sales rose 5.7% (adjusted for exchange rate effects: 2.5%), to € 1.0002 billion (previous year: € 947 million). That meant that tesa once again outperformed the market. The operating result (EBIT) reached € 129.3 million, resulting in an EBIT margin of 12.9% (previous year: 11.5%). The adjusted growth of sales was spurred in large measure by the business in products for the booming electronics industry in Asia and the similarly dynamic U.S. automotive industry.

“We are especially pleased to have reached the billion-euro mark in sales for the first time. This represents an important milestone, and an impressive affirmation of the ongoing success of both our strategy and our consistent implementation of it. The main factors are the development of attractive new lines of business based on innovative technologies and market-driven products along with the consistent development of our structures in growth regions. Even with the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the situation in the eurozone, we can therefore look to the future with confidence,” said Thomas Schlegel, CEO of tesa SE, at today’s press conference in Frankfurt.

tesa has pushed ahead with development of its new lines of business. In tesa’s emerging building supply business segment, additional products manufactured based on tesa’s proprietary ACX technology are now being used by customers in the building and construction industry. New fields of application include mounting reinforcement elements in elevator doors, glass partitions in interior finishing work, and decorative external elements in furniture production. As part of the company’s development of the business in pharmaceutical patches, the production infrastructure was expanded with the goal of offering full service to customers in the pharmaceuticals industry. Validation processes in production went perfectly, already delivering market-ready goods that will lead to initial sales in 2013.

To support the dynamic development taking shape in Asia, tesa continued its activities geared toward expanding the R&D unit at the plant in Suzhou, China. The goal is to be able to supply market-driven solutions to customers even faster – especially in the electronics industry, which is concentrated there. tesa also achieved strong growth in South Korea, where the company expanded its sales structures with an eye to pushing ahead with its entry into new technological fields.

In November, work got under way on the construction of the new tesa headquarters with an integrated research and technology center, in Norderstedt, near the Hamburg airport. “The construction project will secure our long-term growth. Merging these segments will enhance our efficiency and flexibility in developing new products and help ensure that we can meet the changing requirements of our markets even better,” Schlegel said. The company is scheduled to move into the new complex in 2015.

End consumer business: success with new marketing concepts

The company saw positive development in its business in products for consumers, which focuses on Europe and Latin America. Sales grew from € 184.2 million at current rates last year, rising by 2.6% (adjusted for exchange rate effects: 1.6%) to € 188.9 million. That put this business segment’s share of total sales at 18.9% (previous year: 19.5%).

tesa achieved disproportionately high growth in Russia with new marketing concepts that put regional consumer habits at the forefront. In many European countries, the company generated an excellent response with the introduction of a high-quality range of Powerstrips hooks and storage products, designed for the first time for use in bathrooms, in combination with an innovative merchandising system. Like last year, the growth drivers in the office supply and stationery segment were the environmentally friendly products marketed under the EcoLogo sub-brand. This successful approach was extended to the home improvement and DIY store segment, where masking, repair, and carpet laying tapes with especially low environmental impact are setting new trends.

Industrial business: tablet PCs as a new application segment

The Industry division experienced significant growth again, with sales rising by 7.8% (adjusted for exchange rate effects: 3.9%), to € 766.4 million (previous year: € 711.0 million). Both the direct and the commercial business in all regions contributed to these developments. Once again, particularly dynamic development was seen in the business with the U.S. automotive industry and the electronics supply industry in Asia, particularly in China and South Korea. One especially strong growth driver was the company’s entry into the tablet PC segment, where tesa supplied a range of products, especially high-tech mounting solutions for smart technology. Considerable growth was also noted for the company’s anti-counterfeiting and tamper-evident solutions, which are consolidated within the tesa scribos business unit. Well-known new customers rely on the PrioSpot®, which combines a large number of new authenticity features, to protect their high-quality name-brand products. The share of total sales attributable to the business with industrial customers grew to 81.1% (previous year: 80.5%).

Asia: share of sales rises to 24.5%

The Africa / Asia / Australia business region once again showed the strongest growth. Adjusted for exchange rate effects, sales rose 14.4%, to € 245.4 million. That advanced the region’s share of total sales to 24.5% (previous year: 20.8%), with China and South Korea as the main growth markets once again.

Outlook for 2013

As in previous years, the prospects for the development of the sales markets for adhesive tapes in 2013 vary considerably by industry and region. Driven by the ongoing boom in the electronics industry, Asia is expected to remain the most dynamic business region. Development will be slightly below the previous year’s figure, but double-digit growth is still anticipated again this year. North America will continue to focus on the local automotive industry, which is still showing strong economic performance. The other industrial markets should grow at a moderate rate. Successful market launches are expected in the pharmaceuticals sector and in the area of highly durable bonding solutions based on the new ACX technology. In Southern Europe, which has been hard hit by the national debt crisis, continued weakening of the markets is expected, with a decline in demand from private consumers. It is likely that the company will be able to compensate for this trend through ongoing growth in Eastern Europe. The international repositioning activities and innovations mentioned above are also expected to provide positive momentum, so that positive overall development for the year is anticipated. For the years to come, tesa expects growth to slightly outperform the market in both customer segments. Continuing investments in R&D, production, and business structures, particularly in the growth markets of China and Russia, will strengthen tesa’s market position on a sustained basis. The company’s results should benefit from this and improve slightly.

2012 business development online

Current business figures and further information are available in the 2012 business development overview, which is included in this press kit and is also available online at www.tesa.com/company/investors.


About tesa SE
tesa SE is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of technical adhesive tapes and self-adhesive system solutions (more than 7,000 products) for industrial and professional customers as well as end consumers. Since 2001, tesa SE (3,800 employees) has been a wholly owned affiliate of Beiersdorf AG (whose products include NIVEA, Eucerin, and La Prairie). Applications for various industrial sectors, such as the automotive industry, the electronics sector (e.g. mobile phones, laptops), printing and paper, and security concepts for effective brand and product protection, account for about 80 percent of tesa’s sales (2012: 1.0002 billion euros). tesa also recently began partnering with the pharmaceuticals industry to develop medicated patches. tesa earns just under 20 percent of its sales in the consumer segment, where 300 products for end consumers make working in the home and the office easier.